Max soblik



(No Model.) 3 sheets -sheet 1.

M. SOBLIK.

TELAUTOGRAPH.

No. 461,152. Patented Oct. 13,1891.

(No Model.) a Sheets-Sheet 2.

M; SOBLIK.

TELAUTOGRAPH.

No. 461,152. Patented Oct. 13,1891.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet a. M. SOBLIK.

TELAUTOGRAPH. No. 461,152. Patented Oct. 13,1891.

L AWJI 1 UNITED STATES *AT ENT FICE.

MAX SOBLIK OF BERLIN, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR TO PAUL A DOLPH, OF SAME PLACE. I

TELAUTOGRAPH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 461,152, dated October 13, 189 1.

Application filed March 23, 1891- Serial No. 386,070. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MAX SOBLIK, engineer,

a subject of'the King of Prussia and German Emperor, residing at Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia and German Empire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in 'lelautographs; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to devices whereby drawings, plans, manuscripts, printed matter, and thelike may be exactly reproduced at a distance; and it mainly consists in arranging a shaft both at the transmitting and'receiving stations, so that both shafts are set in motion simultaneously by means of an electric current, and thereby cause two pins or styles to reciprocate in a simultaneous and identical manner, one of which is guided at the transmitting-station by an insulating-surface having the design or writing to be co'pied formed upon it, so that certain modifications in the electrical resistance and conse-' quent electrical undulations are produced, whereas the other style, arranged at the receiving-station, is alternately moved by the said electrical undulations to and from the surface to be written or drawn upon. In this manner a precise copy of the drawing, writing, or type arranged upon the guiding-sure face at the transmitting-station is obtained at the receiving-station.

-In the accompanying drawings, Figurel is a side elevation of the instrument. Fig. 2 is a plan thereof. Fig. 3 is a detail view of a contact arrangement adapted to rotate simultaneously with the shafts. Fig. 4 shows an escapement adapted to be operated by an electric current and to be employed in those cases where the simultaneously-moving shafts of both stations are not operated by an elec tric current, but by clock-work suitably arranged at each station; and Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating the manner in which the electric connections for operating the telautograph are made.

In the form of apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2 the simultaneous rotation of the shafts .0, one of which is provided at each station and supported by the framing B B, is obtained by means of two ratchet-wheels a, pro-' vided with an equal number of teeth, with which engage two transmitting-pawls k, operated by the electro-magnets E. "When an intermittent current is conducted through the convolutions of the electro-magnets E at the transmitting and receiving stations, each fresh impulse of the current draws the arm I), pivoted at c and carrying the pawl 70, to the right in Fig. 1, whereby the wheels connected with the shaft 0 at both stations are caused to move simultaneously and an equal distance. As soon as the-electric current ceases to act the electro-magnet E discontinues to attract the arm I), which under the action of the spring f is so displaced as to allow of the transmitting-pawl 7c engaging with the next tooth of the ratchet-wheel Ct. To each of the shafts O, which are thus moved simultaneously at the transmitting and receiving stations, is secured a cranked arm 2', which in revolving reciprocates, by means of the rod or link 0, the slide g, arranged on the carriage-way 11. To a projection formed on this slide g are secured the electro-magnets E E and also the arms a and a pivoted at c and 0 respectively, each arm being provided at' its extreme end with a style 8 8 d d is the angular armature of an electromagnet, which is so pivoted as to be attracted by the coils E E when these are excited, so that its vertical arm moves to the left in Fig. 1, while its horizontal arm moves upwardly and raises the shorter arm of the lever a, whereby the style 8 is depressed.

Directly underneath the styles 3' s are placed the writing-surfaces S S',oneof which ICO ployed as the receiver the surface S, placed under the style 8 is not a conductor of electricity, but is intended to receive an exact copy of the strokes or lines existing on the surface S, as will be hereinafter more fully explained.

The feeding of the writin -surfaces S S takes place under the action of the rollers T T, arranged underneath such surfaces and suitably coupled together. These rollers are operated by the electro-magnets E E through the mediumof the conveying-pawl 71; and the ratchet-wheel a. The electro-magnets E E being both at the transmitting and receiving stations, excited by the same current, it follows that the feeding of the writing-surfaces at both ends is perfectly simultaneous and uniform, just as the speed of rotation of the shafts C. 1

There is also mounted upon each shaft '0 a contact or switch arm 6, which when the shaft rotates strikes-the contact-pieces c 8 and thereby whenever it completes one-half of a revolution closes the electric'circuit com prising the electro-magnets mentioned above, whereby the writing-surfaces S S are moved along.

Each shaft 0 is provided at one end, at the back in Fig. 1, with a contact or commutator device, of which Fig. 3 is a detail front view.

Upon the base-plate A is provided a supporting-block B to which is secured a friction-disk F, which is provided 011 the side turned toward the shaft 0 with a pin or stud s. As the shaft 0 turns in the direction of the hands of a clock the lever-arm a pivoted on the said shaft at 0 conies in contact with this pin or stud s, and thereby causes the friction-disk F to participate in the motion of the shaft 0.

h is a lever-arm provided with a frictionroller 7", which under the influence of a spring f touches the edge of the disk F, but when the electro-magnets E are excited is drawn off the said edge in consequence of the lowering of the lever-arm 'h. According as the lever arm h, with its friction-roller r, is in or out of contact with the disk F this disk is placed, as it were, under the action of a brake or released therefrom. In the former case the pin 8 pushes back the arm a overcoming the resistance of a-sprin'g f, with the result that the contact-spring I, provided on the outer end of the said arm 00, comes in contact with the conducting-surface Z of the disk F-and closes the circuit comprising the elec'tro-magnets E, adapted to move the styles.

To generate the intermittent current required for operating the shafts 0, both at the transmitting and receiving stations, a special contact-breaker is employed, somewhat similar in construction to one of Neefs hammers, as shown in Fig. 2. It consists of two electromagnets E E, which act upon an iron armature m, pivoted at c and carrying a contact spring Z The arm of this piece m which extends beyond the spring f is provided with the contact-spring Z As this piece or armature m oscillates and alternately comes in contact with and recedes from the contact 19, and as this switch device is inserted into the main'circuit or line,? the current passing through the latter is intermittently interrupted, so that the consecutive electric impulses are of the same duration as those produced in the local circuit.

Instead of setting in motion the shafts O O at the transmitting and receiving stations simultaneously by means 'of an electric current, such simultaneous motion may be produced, as before stated, by means of a separate clock-work arranged at each station and adapted to impart rotary motion to each of the shafts. in this case only serves for controlling the speed of rotation with the assistance of an escapement. This arrangement is exemplified in Fig. 4, where 77, 72 is a double-armed lever, one arm of which carries the pawls 10 k while the other arm assumes the shape of the armature of an electro-magnet and is placed under the influence of the electro-magnet f is aspring engaging with the arm b of this double lever and having a tendency to retain the pawls ofthe escapement in the position shown in Fig. 4.

Thev electric connections of the various mechanisms hereinbefore described and the manner in which they influence each other are diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 5.

A current is supplied. by the local battery L and (if the switch K is in the position shown in the figure) passes through the conductors 1 and 6 to the contact-breaker constructed on Neefs system, thence through the conductor 17 it passes on to the switch K, and thence through the conductor 5 back to the battery. When, however, the switch K touches the contact to and the contacts e e (or 6 e are temporarily closed, the current flows through the conductors 1 and 2 to the contacts 6 or 6- as the case may be, and thence through the arm e, the conductor 3, the coil of the electro-magnet E the conductor 4, and the conductor 5 back to the battery. WVhen the switch K bears upon the contact-piece u and when the contact-spring Z is caused to touch the conducting-surface Z of the friction-disk F, the local current flows through the conductors 1, 2, and 14 to the disk F, spring Z, arm (1 and the conductor 15 to the convolutions of the electro-magnet E, and, lastly, through the conductors 16, 4, and 5 back to the battery. WVhile the local current is thus caused to complete, according to requirements, either of the three circuits indicated for performing work, to be more fully explained further on, the current supplied by the line-battery L, the flow of which is interrupted by the vibration of the spring Z passes firstthrough the conductor 18, the contact-spring Z and the conductor F on to the electro-magnet E thence through the conductors 8 to the electro-magnets E, and then either through the .conductor 9, the resistance NV, and the conductors 10 and 13 to earth or through the conductor 11, the style The intermittent electric current I IIO s, the Writing-surface S, and the conductors 12 and 13 to earth.

The operation is as follows: When it is desired to reproduce telegraphically at a distance a manuscript, drawing, or printed text, the same is reproduced in non-conductin g ink upon a surface being a good conductor of electricity, (tin-foil or the like). This surface is then inserted into the conveying-roller T of the transmitting-station, so that .the arm a with its conducting-point s, rests upon the said surface. At the receiving-station a writing-surface of any suitable materialfor example, paper-is stretched within the conveying-roller T in such a manner that the arm aflwith its style 3 is situated directly above this surface. The arm a in this case rests upon the conveyingroller connected with the conductor 12. When the switch K at the transmitting-station, which bears upon the contact to while it is at rest, is shifted to the contact 16, while the corresponding switch K at the receiving-station is left upon the contact u, there will form at the transmitting-station a circuit through the conductors 1, 6, 17, and 5,which will set in operation the contact-breaker on Neefs system. At the same time, owing to the oscillating motion of the spring Z the main-line current is interrupted from time to time at short intervals, so that the individual electric pulsations will take the following course: The positive current coming from the line-battery L passes through the conductor 18, the spring 1, the conductor 7, the electro-magnet E the conductor 8, the electro-magnets E, the conductor v 9, and then either through the resistance W and the conductors 10 and 13 to earth or through the conductor 11, the arm a the pin 8, the conducting-surface S, and the conductors 12 and 13 also to earth, for, according as the style 8 is in contact with the insulating lines or strokes or with the rest of the Writingsurface, which is a good conductor of electricity, it causes the current to follow either the one orthe other of these two courses. As for the negative current, upon issuing from the line-battery L and passingto the receiving-station through the line-battery L it hence assumes the same course as the positive current does at the transmitting-station, except that the style 8 at the transmittingstation does not rest upon a conducting-surface, but directly upon the conveying-roller, (or, if necessary, may be dispensed with altogether,) or it may be turned up. In this man-- ner the electro-magnets E at both stations are excited simultaneously and the impulses of the line-current and the shafts O are at both ends caused to perform precisely the same movements at the same moment. At the same time as each shaft 0 revolves the arm a and the insulating-pin s' carry along with them the friction-roller F.

An important point is, that the coils or con volutions of the electro-magnet E and the resistance V are so proportioned that when the maximum strength of current is attained both the electro-magnets E E and the electro-magnets E E attract their respective armatures, while as the current decreases in strength for example, when the line-current at the transmitting-station does not pass through the conducting-surface, but through the resistance Wthe armatures E E alone operate the pawl it, while the brake-roller r retains the position shown in Fig. 3.

While the toothed wheel a revolves, as described, the arms a and a are moved alternately backward and forward, which causes the style 8 at the transmitting-station to move upon the conducting surface having the strokes or lines to be reproduced formed upon it with an insulating substance. So long as the style is in contact with the conductingsurface the electrical impulses in the main line will continue at the maximum degree of strength and both the electro-magnets E E and the electro-magnets E E will attract their respective armatures. l/Vhen, however, the conducting-style s meets one of the insulating-lines of the writing or design to be copied, the main-line current is thereby caused to fiow through the resistance W, and in consequence of. the resulting dimi nution of the strength of current the electro-magnets E E are alone operated and not the magnets E E transmitting-station as the shaft 0 continues to revolve the brake-roller 0" under the electric impulse strikes the friction-roller F, and, overcoming the resistance of the spring f bends backwardly the arm a in such a manner that the contact-spring Z touches the surface Z Thus it will be seen that owing to the variation of the strength of the electrical impulses proceeding from the transmitting-station the local battery at the receiving-station,

which in the meantime has remained at rest, is now set in operation, the current flowing from the said local battery through the conductors 1, 2, and l t to the friction-disk F, thence through the spring Z'to the arm a and thence through the conductor to the electro-magnets E E, and finally through the conductors l6 and 4 and the conductor 5 back to the battery. Thus the electro-magnets E E are operated, and by means of the knee-shaped armature cl d the style 8 is pressed down upon the writing-surface S at the receiving-station. The movement ofthe styles both at the transmitting and receiving stations being precisely simultaneous and the style at the receiving-station being pressed down exactly at the same moment as the conducting style at the transmitting-station touches one of the insulating-lines, it is clear that the marks made by the style at the receiving-station must exactly correspond to the strokes or lines of the style at the transmitting-station.

In addition to the reciprocating motion imparted tothe style at the receiving-station through the electro-magnets E E it is also,

It follows that at the latter course is adopted. The displacement of the writing-surfaces is obtained through the arm 6, secured to the shaft 0, which at each half of a revolution of this shaft strikes the contacts e (or e This enables the local circuit 1 2 3 4 5 to form for a short time, in which circuit are inclosed the electro-magnets E E adapted to set in operation the carrier-rollers T T. Thus the writing-surfaces both at the transmitting and receiving stations are moved along simultaneously.

The arrangement herein described may be modified in a variety of different ways as regards the details of the several mechanisms without departing from the spirit of the in vention. For example, at the receiving-station instead of employing a writing-surface of any suitable material-such as paper-and causing the line-current to pass through the resistance NV and go down to earth, the writing-surface may consist of a material being an electrical conductor, so that the conductor 9 is placed in communication with the style 3 so that the current will partly pass through the resistance WV and partly through the writing-surface S, the carrier-rollers T T, and the conductor 12 to earth. If desired, the resis ance W may be switched out entirely at the receiving-station and the main-line current turned off either through the style 8', communicating for the time being with the conductor 9 and through the conducting-surface on which the style rests, or through the style 8, which, being inoperative, rests upon the carrier-rollerrorthrough both. The remarkable feature in this connection is that during the telegraphic operation the resistance can only be altered by the style which for the time being rests upon the writing-surface at the receiving-station and that the fluctuations of current caused by such changes of the resist ance close the circuit which operates the local battery at the receiving-station, so that atthe latter the style 8 is pressed down, while at precisely the same moment the carrier-roller is caused to move the writing-surface the required distance farther on.

The local circuit'of the receiving-station, into which is switched Neefs contact-breaker, should be broken during the telegraphic operation, otherwise, owing to the vibrations of the contact-spring Z the regularity of the pulsations of current transmitted through the main line might be influenced in a manner unfavorable to the desired precision.

Instead of employing a conducting-surface with non-conducting marks for producing the undulations of current necessary for operating the style 3 and the carrier-rollers T T the position may be reversed and-asurface of medium conducting power may be written upon with a substance beinga good electrical conductor. The best course. is to employ for this purpose a sheet of a porous material of medium conducting powersay a sheet of paper treated with a conducting substance Whereon the words or marks to be transmitted are written in metallic ink, being a good conductor of electricity. This conductingliquid partly permeates the paper and at the parts where it does so increases the conducting power of the same to such an extent that when the style 5 slides over the surface S, bearing the writing, the strength of the mainline current is alternately increased or abated. These fluctuations of current may, as has been explained in regard to the arrangement above described, be utilized for closing circuits at the receiving-station through the action of electro-ma'gnets and cause the local circuit at that station to operate the style as well as the carryingroller.

It may be mentioned, in conclusion, that from the same transmitting-station communications of the nature described may beforwarded to a number of receiving-stations either parallel to each other or arranged in succession on the same line. To accomplish this result, it is only necessary to set the switches K to the contact-piece u corresponding to the desired station, whereby the local battery at that station is set in the circuit.

Having now described the nature of my invention and the manner in which the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim,

and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is l 1. In a telautograph, the combination,with the revoluble shaft 0, of the reciprocatory carriage g and intermediate mechanism operatively connecting the said carriage with shaft 0, a style carried by the said carriage and adapted to cause variations in the main circuit, a second style carried by the said carriage, an electro-magnet E, also carried by the said carriage and included in the local circuit, and a circuit-closer adapted to be operated by the said variations in the main circuit, and therebyto cause the electro-magnet electro-inagnets and adapted to turn the said ratchet-wheel and rollers, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a telautogra-ph, the combination, with the revoluble shaft 0 and the spring-actuated arm pivoted to the said shaft and provided with a contact-piece, of the friction-disk F, providedwith an insulated pinbearingagainst the said arm, so that the disk is revolved by the arm, and a friction-brake adapted to autorhatically arrest the motion of the said disk when operated by a variation in the current in the main circuit, and thereby to turn the said arm on its pivot and cause the contact-piece to bear upon the conducting-surface of the disk, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. In a telautograph, the combination, with a main-circuit battery and a contact-breaker for forming the intermittent main current, of the electro-magnets E, included in the main circuit, and the receiving and transmitting styles synchronously reciprocated longitudinally by the electro-magnets E, the local batteries, the electro-maguets E, included in the local circuits and adapted to operate the receiving-styles when excited, the electro-magnet-s E included in the local circuits and adapted to synchronously change the relative lateral positions of the styles and the surfaces upon which they hear at each longitudinal reciprocation of the styles, the electro-magnets E included in the main circuit and adapted to switch the local currents through the said electro magnets E and excite them when influenced by variation in the current passing through the transmitting-styles, and message-sheets of unequal conductivity at different parts of their surfaces and arranged under the transmitting-styles and in the path of the main circuit through the said styles to the earth, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

MAX SOBLIK.

Witnesses:

MARo M. RoTsEN,

SIEGFRIED HAMBURGER. 

